Visions in the Dark: The Life of Pinky Thompson
A Hawaiian story of pain and promise, of challenge and triumph. A story of leadership.
- Filmmaker(s)
- Ty Sanga
- Vince Keala Lucero
- Category
- Full-Length Film
- Subject Matter
- History, Biography, Culture
- Featured In
- PIC Exchange
- PIC Exchange
- Region
- Polynesia
- Length
- 60 Minutes
- Year
- 2016
- Website
- www.thepinkydoc.com/
Pinky Thompson thought bigger than himself and further than the single cause at hand. He fought hard against the stigma of an inferior Native Hawaiian. A multifaceted cultural identity was the key to their ultimate survival. He championed a health care system, created invaluable educational programs and strengthened the pride of Native Hawaiians. He envisioned an ideal Hawaiʻi that no one else saw and fought for it from the battlefields of Normandy, down the steps of congress, to his humble home in Niu Valley.
Ty Sanga - Director
Ty Sanga is a prolific storyteller, talented director and man with a message. His short film, Stones, a graceful depiction of a Hawaiian legend, was the first entirely in the Hawaiian language to be shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2011. Sanga quickly returned to Sundance as a Native Lab Fellow to develop his first feature film, After Mele. In addition to Family Ingredients, he has directed a number of TV shows and documentaries that explore the rich complexities of humanity and our continuing struggle to find happiness.
Vince Keala Lucero - Producer
Telly award winner, Vince Keala Lucero, grew up spearfishing and surfing the oceans of West O’ahu. He attended the Kamehameha Schools, where he was chosen to produce an award-winning documentary on the 6th Festival of Pacific Arts. Studying TV and film at Loyola Marymount University, his senior project was the very first music video of the Black Eyed Peas; "Fallin' Up." Post graduation, he joined Swank Audio Visuals, and at 23, became the company’s youngest manager at the Four Seasons Newport, and later the Ritz Carlton Kapalua. Returning to O'ahu to form the videography and A/V company AFP, Lucero focused on work as a Cinematographer, lensing indie favs of the Hawaii International Film Festival like Public Access, Valtor, Symphony for One, Wahine O Ke Kai, and PBS Documentary Feature Na Kamalei: Men of Hula. Using his instincts as a hula dancer, Lucero captured the story of Robert Cazimero’s Halau Na Kamalei as they swept the Merrie Monarch Hula Competition. The film took the Hawaii Filmmaker Award, and Best Documentary at the Hawai'i International, Los Angeles Asian Pacific, San Diego, and San Francisco International Film Festivals. As a native Hawaiian filmmaker, Lucero is committed to developing works from a unique perspective. Throughout his 14 years of filmmaking, his passion has always been to produce works that positively affect the way people think about their impact on the environment, their communities, and themselves.
